VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - The Communication and Informatics Ministry (Kominfo) has urged young women to master science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) as well as digital literacy to support digital transformation programs in Indonesia.

In an official statement received here on Tuesday, Secretary General of the ministry, Mira Tayyiba, said that women's mastery of STEM and digital literacy is necessary to equalize the proportion of digital ecosystem users, which are currently male-dominated both at the global and national levels.

"As a woman in the digital era, I invite young women to continue to step up and work together to realize an inclusive, empowering, and sustainable digital transformation," Tayyiba said at the "Girls In ICT Day 2023" forum, held on Monday.

According to International Telecommunication Union (ITU) data, in 2022, most of the world's 2.7 billion people who did not have internet access were women, she noted.

In the same report, the proportion of women using the internet globally amounted to 57 percent, compared to 62 percent for men.

"In the national context, the survey carried out by Kominfo and Katadata Insight Center in the same year showed that men's digital literacy reached 3.56 points, higher than women's score of 3.52 points," she informed.

Furthermore, she said that more men master STEM than women.

Therefore, in order to support gender equality, the ministry is seeking to close the gap in mastery of STEM and digital literacy by supporting women's empowerment through various digital transformation programs.

"With internet access and skills to use digital technology, women can expand their opportunities to start businesses with a larger market, get better jobs and health and financial services, pursue education, and exchange information and participate more actively in community and family life," she said. (Antaranews)